THROWBACK; Did Disney jump the Gunn?

Okay, Reader.

This post is going to be considerably shorter and also simpler in terms of content, as I am pressed for time and also trying to remain current with trending news in the geeky media - even though I'm already behind on this one...

However, this has prompted me to categorize this as a "Throwback" post - enabling me to discuss the events that I might be late to the party to. Anything a week old or older qualifies for this type of content - knowing how frequently I will be delayed in reacting to the latest trends, I am pretty confident this format is going to stick around for a while.

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It's about time I brought this blog some film content - after having TV related posts take the vast majority between the 3 screens I claimed I would be featuring posts on - and I figured that I might as well discuss one of the stories that shattered the internet not once, but twice, when it spread like wildfire across social media and online publication outlets.

If you're a fan of Marvel's smash hit Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, you are probably familiar with its writer and director, James Gunn, and the controversy surrounding him that broke back in July 20th of 2018 - when he was fired by Disney the morning after old tweets - containing incredibly inappropriate humor (which I will not disclose here due to their vulgarity) - resurfaced across the internet.

In the time after the Mouse House dropped him, Gunn quietly hit the ground running - not only has he produced a horror film approach to a character with Superman's superpowers, but he was also hired Warner Bros, a direct competitor to Marvel and Disney, to helm DC's The Suicide Squad.

Now, since been given back the director's chair for the third installment of Guardians for Marvel, which was officially announced on the internet on March 15th, 2019, Gunn has made a Hollywood comeback unlike anything the film industry has seen before.

Disney made a bold move in reversing this decision - but were they even justified in firing him in the first place?

At the time, maybe. Disney was hot of the heels of having fired Rosanne Barr from the revival of her namesake television sitcom - which was a ratings breaker when it returned in late 2017 - after she published a racist remark about former President Obama advisor Valerie Jarrett. Despite continuing the show as The Connors and writing her character off of it, there most certainly was a loss in profitability off of the program that has jeopardized a possible second season due to the controversy.

To maintain this zero tolerance policy towards prolific people in their company, company chairman Alan Horn took swift action in giving the same punishment to Gunn, which also resulted in a controversial backlash circulating the internet.

The key difference between Barr and Gunn is not whether or not their tweets were of an appropriate nature - they certainly were not.

The sole factor that can justify Barr's firing while not doing the same for Gunn was the time in which their provocative humor was published.

The tweets that Gunn was fired for were written and shared on social media over ten years ago - tweets which he has since apologized for on numerous occasions. He changed his brand of comedy and matured his public profile as a director prior to being hired by Disney and Marvel - whereas Barr's statement was made in modern day.

However, it would take a lot more than hindsight to convince the media giant to undo the damage of Gunn's firing - so what led to him being rehired?

I believe it can be attributed to three things; the aforementioned hiring of Gunn by their rival (DC), comedian Sarah Silverman, and the failed search for a replacement.

Sarah Silverman, who voices Vanellope in the Wreck it Ralph film series, came under fire for jokes she made in the past that were in the same vein as Gunn's - but was never fired for it. If she could headline a children's movie franchise and have jokes like that in her past without getting a pink slip, was it really fair to do the same to Gunn, who directed a far raunchier, more adult themed superhero saga? Probably not.



Disney and Marvel, while they reportedly never interviewed anyone else for the position of directing Guardians 3, lost out on several viable candidates for the job - all of whom stood in solidarity with giving Gunn back his movies; including the likes of Taika Waititi (the comedic mastermind behind Thor Ragnarok), Edgar Wright(the former director of Marvel's Ant Man and the visionary behind Baby Driver), and the film duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller (the writers of Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse, the geniuses behind The Lego Movie universe, and the former directors of Solo - A Star Wars Story).

So, with all of this said and done, I personally believe that Disney jumped the Gunn (pun absolutely intended) in the first place. While I find the tweets deplorable, I believe them being past statements - which he had apologized for on multiple occasions - make all the difference in his situation. In any case, I am personally glad to see him earn his chance at redemption, and look forward to seeing both The Suicide Squad and Guardians Vol 3 when they arrive.

How about you, reader? Do you agree or disagree? Feel free to let me know in the comments below, or by reaching out to me through my contact info below!

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Any questions or suggestions for me?
Feel free to get in touch with me by emailing
screensceneofageek@gmail.com

I might expand into more social media
if I continue running this blog
after the college course is done,
but for now, you can direct message me
on Instagram - @stealthabotte

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Check my channel out by clicking or copy-pasting
this link into your web browser:

https://www.youtube.com/user/Stealthabotte

New upload link:

https://youtu.be/PICLwgQiEHQ

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An Auction Reaction...

Okay, Reader.

It was announced on Thursday, March 21st, that Marvel Television, in association with Prop Store, are selling the original costumes and props from Marvel's Netflix line up of superheroes - which were recently axed by the streaming service giant in February.

As a devout fan of the Marvel Netflix shows since their origin in 2015 with Daredevil Season 1, you can imagine that I absolutely HAD to provide some feedback on the matter (which can be verified by this previous post on the blog.)
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10 (Modern) Live Action Superhero Shows that redefined the power of the small screen - in no particular order:

https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/

10-modern-live-action-superhero-shows_10.html

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My initial gut response was terrible.

It seemed like Marvel intended on making this move as a middle finger to Netflix, as they don't exactly need the money - since the Mouse House that owns their soul recently officially acquired the rights to 20th Century Fox's assets.

However, it felt like turning a cold shoulder on the loyal fans/viewers of the shows, such as myself, and the ones tirelessly working in the #savedaredevil campaign (which you can read about below.)
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FEATURING THE FANDOM W/O FEAR:

https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/
featuring-fandom-without-fear.html
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I felt that our efforts to bring back these wonderful adaptations of these heroes

were being directly ignored by the corporate overlords working at Marvel as a result

of them pulling this stunt on us.

HOWEVER

The #savedaredevil team and fans who follow it are not giving up on what they've been doing, and instead hope to utilize this soul-crushing news as motivation to carry the torch on with their fight for justice, just like the street heroes of those television shows would.

After all, these costumes and props are only material, and could easily be recreated if needed.

Regardless, this auction doesn't change the fact that the shows must remain dormant for at least 2 years by association to stupid clauses maintained by Netflix.

Whether or not this is Marvel's way of telling us to move on, I will throw the Avengers: Endgame marketing right back at them;

• The fans when Marvel Auctions off the Marvel Netflix Props:

"Some people are willing to move on... But not us..."

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FOR MORE INFORMATION:

https://www.marvel.com/
articles/culture-lifestyle/marvel-television-props-costumes-to-be-auctioned
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...

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Any questions or suggestions for me?
Feel free to get in touch with me by emailing
screensceneofageek@gmail.com

I might expand into more social media
if I continue running this blog
after the college course is done,
but for now, you can direct message me
on Instagram - @stealthabotte

__________________________________________________________________________

Check my channel out by clicking or copy-pasting
this link into your web browser:

https://www.youtube.com/user/Stealthabotte

New upload link:

https://youtu.be/PICLwgQiEHQ

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Featuring the Fandom Without Fear...

Okay, Reader.

Before I actually jump right into the subject matter of this post, I thought I would update you on how I hope to share content on this blog. In my Q&A post brought to you by Guten Morden, I mentioned how I intended on cycling between Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for sharing on the blog, but I believe that more frequent posting may be necessary. So, to slightly string out the rules a bit, I intend to share at least one post each weekend, on either Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, but I hope to possibly post two times per weekend. 

My personal life has recently gotten a little less busy (as I had a theatre commitment that took up a vast majority of my spare time), so I hope that this increase in posting will be easier to attempt, but due to the other obligations that college and my personal life demand of me, I ask that you bear with me.

With that in mind, This is a feature story I wrote in regards to a geeky cause I can fully get behind, one I briefly mentioned in my Q&A from Guten Morden - even though you probably figured that out by reading the title. In any case, enjoy!

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THE FANDOM WITHOUT FEAR
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Among the many themes woven into the complex narratives of Marvel’s smash hit Netflix series,
Daredevil, is this one, stated in one of its iconic lines:
“the lone man who thinks he can make a difference.”
The same ideology can be clearly seen in the members of the show’s unashamedly passionate fan base.
After learning of the unexpected cancellation of the flagship streaming program by Netflix,
despite it having the highest ratings from critics and audiences alike across its three season run,
these ordinary people from all across the globe have soared to extraordinary new heights to have
their voices heard, fighting back against the greed of a corporation unlike any other fan movement
before. In a matter of months, they have amassed an army of over 250,000 supporters worldwide
in an online petition, and even garnered the attention and endorsements from the actors
involved in the show, taking social media by storm in unprecedented fashion.
This is the #savedaredevil campaign, consisting of the finest members of the self-proclaimed,
“fandom without fear.”

It was speculated that Netflix began exterminating their Marvel superhero properties in light of Disney
officially announcing their own subscription streaming service to rival theirs -
starting with the cancellations of Iron Fist and Luke Cage, leading up to the highly anticipated release
of Daredevil’s third season. When Netflix publicly cited low viewership and social media engagement
as their justification for prematurely ending these programs, a fan campaign known as #renewdaredevil
was created on November 26th to try and combat this on behalf of the flagship series to the
Marvel-Netflix partnership. However, their initiative was barely initiated when the news of Daredevil
joining his fellow defenders in cancellation hell broke the internet on the evening of November 29th -
despite season 3 receiving rave reviews from critics and audiences alike, winning multiple
“Golden Tomato” awards from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes in 2018 for being the fan favorite
television show of the year, and being the highest in ratings for a superhero television show.

At this time, a fan by the name of Joseph Garcia created a change.org petition under the hashtag
“savedaredevil,” which garnered the most signatures out of all of the other petitions across the
web. The #renewdaredevil team reached out to Garcia and partnered their campaign
with his petition, rebranding themselves as #savedaredevil and transforming the way people
could peacefully protest all over the world.

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Here is the link to said petition:

Feel free to sign it!

https://www.change.org/p/netflix-disney-and-marvel-tv-studios-save-daredevil

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In the four months since then, both the petition and the site have exploded in internet traffic.
After catching the attention of the show’s stars, and getting special shout outs from the show’s
leading actors - Charlie Cox, who played Daredevil/Matt Murdock, and Vincent D’Onofrio,
who played the Kingpin - the petition has crossed 251,000 signatures and counting as of
February 8th (the original writing date for this piece.) As for the campaign itself, #savedaredevil
has given and will continue to give a plethora of ways they can pitch in to spread awareness
about the show. On top of collecting and sending letters to the corporate overlords working at
Marvel, Disney, and Netflix, scheduling social media events across Facebook, Twitter, and
Instagram, and producing T-shirts for sale to the fans, they have been incorporating the fans
of this fan campaign into their efforts through a meetup in New York City during the taping of
The Today Show, and have created not one, but two fan submission video events: a promotional
trailer featuring anyone involved in the campaign, and a week of promoting fan made works of
fiction, music, videos, arts & crafts, and more.

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Here is the link to the #savedaredevil website:

Feel free to check it out!

https://www.savedaredevil.com/home

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As a stop motion animator and voice actor on YouTube whose favorite superhero character and
television show just so happens to be Daredevil, I am an active supporter and member of the
#savedaredevil campaign, and will do my best to participate in as many of the events they’re
holding as I possibly can; although I’m arguably an ordinary dork, this campaign, much like the
character it fights for, proves that a lone person can make a difference. And when every lone
person assembles together for a cause they believe in, the difference that it could make could
also make history with it.

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Check out my latest DD voice acting collab:

https://youtu.be/1w_neRBpjaE

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Even if the #savedaredevil movement were to fail in bringing the show back for a fourth season,
nothing but good came from its efforts; at the very least, it united a fanbase spanning across the
globe into a loving and supportive community, and at the very greatest, it redefined the impact
that ordinary fans can have on social media and the television industry itself. With the support of
the actors who starred in the show itself also advocating on behalf of #savedaredevil, we as
members of an ever-changing society may need to redefine what a superpower can be and
question who superheroes can be; in order to do so, we do not need to look any further than at
the people behind the #savedaredevil campaign and those who consider themselves members of
the “fandom without fear.”

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In an update to this post, I should probably mention that my Daredevil related stuff for the fanworks initiative has actually been featured on the #savedaredevil submissions Tumblr page. The link is below if you want to check out the works of everyone else, but my specific submissions are featured below the link.

https://savedaredevilsubmissions.tumblr.com/

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Any questions or suggestions for me?
Feel free to get in touch with me by emailing
screensceneofageek@gmail.com

I might expand into more social media
if I continue running this blog
after the college course is done,
but for now, you can direct message me
on Instagram - @stealthabotte

__________________________________________________________________________

Check my channel out by clicking or copy-pasting
this link into your web browser:

https://www.youtube.com/user/Stealthabotte

New upload link:

https://youtu.be/PICLwgQiEHQ

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